![]() Here we are, I'm having my third child. My water breaks during labor. Was the strangest feeling, it was thick and green. Not like before. Nurse tells me there is a problem. They rush me to delivery. Here he comes, screaming all the way! I could hear the sighs of relief. I didn't know till I was in recovery, they were not expecting that he would ever breathe. Dr. Dixon comes in, explains to me the green. The baby had passed meconium (first infant stool), before birth. Meaning, he was not in a sack of water, he was in a sack of stool. This attributed to the light tint of green stain in the folds of his skin. Was told, he's fine now. He's been examined by Dr. Bettinghouse, he's fine. NOT EVEN CLOSE! ![]() First day home seems normal. First night was good night. The forth day, smooth day. Fouth night, life changed! It was around 3 a.m. feeding time. Fed William, put him up on my shoulder. He snuggled down into my neck. I am totally mesmerized by him. Sitting there rocking him, patting, rubbing his back. Not sure for how long, was in a world of my own at that moment. Then I hear it, he burps, spits up at same time. I wasn't alarmed, babies do that. As I brought him from my shoulder to wipe his face, I see green stuff on his face. I've seen this before. When I was 12. My brother did this. He died. I'm telling my self, ok, calm down, call Dr. Bettinghouse. When she returns my call, I went into another form of shock. She asks,"You are breast feeding aren't you"? I said,"Yes". She tells me, your just nervous. He is fine. Put warm washclothes on your breast before feeding him. I'm thinking WHAT the **** is she talking about! This isn't my first baby. Didn't she listen to me? Is she not going to have me take him to hospital or something? Takes me back in memory for a short bit. What do I do? My brother died cause they let his incubator go dry at the hospital. What do I do? Took him to the emergency room anyway. What do they do? They want to know who his Pediatrician is. They call her. She tells them he's fine, they send us home. He's not fine! He is throwing up more bile! Now what? Got out the phone book, started calling Pediatricans. This poor lady who answers the phones at a answering service was hounded by me every 5 minutes until a Doctor called me. It's 6 a.m. now. Dr. Crow calls me. Says have him in the office at 8 a.m. I call my mother. I need help! She comes, takes us to his office. William is now throwing up every few minutes. He puts a tube down his nose into his tummy. Puts the other end of it in a plastic cup. Sends us to Children's Medical Center Dallas. My mother does not drive the freeways, much less heading out with a child with a tube down his nose, a plastic cup, and no clue where Children's was at. Off we GO! ![]() At that time Children's was a private hospital. There was not a
emergency room, there was a back area where you were sent. Waiting there
was Nurse Eliene Kissenger. Who would years down the road become a very
dear friend. She takes us up to the Third Floor, to a big room with 4 baby
hospital beds in it. Mom and I are just spaced out. Pretty soon here comes
a Nurse to talk to me. It's already clear we will not be going back home
today. Mom heads back home with my daughter Mindy. Here we are, I'm
standing in this room, scared and feeling completely alone in the world.
They come take William to the "treatment" room, I don't get to go. I don't
like this. He comes back with an IV with a pump on it,a different tube
down his nose. Within moments of getting my baby back, two Dr.'s walk in
the room. One says. I'm Dr. Dammit, the other says I'm Dr. Bootlegger. You
need to pray you don't see us again. I'm thinking Dr. Dammit? Bootlegger?
That wasn't what he said, it was what I heard though. He is Dr. Bill
Dammert and Dr. Ted Votteler. Didn't know at that moment, they didn't tell
me, they are surgeons. Tell me, they have ordered X-rays on the baby, and
walk out the door. I'm in a real fog here. I've got huge circles on my
shirt where my milk has been leaking, I didn't even feel it. I'm totally
numb. We go down to X-ray. The worst to unfold. Here they come again. The
surgeons. They tell me, he has hirschsprungs disease. Well, I didn't
understand what they said at all and I couldn't say it myself for about 3
weeks. The next page is on the first year of life in the hospital. Surgery,
ICU, touching on what hirschsprungs is. There is navagation on each page
to the pages within William's Life. Navagation at bottom will take you out
of William's Pages. ![]() Support Group for familes with HD
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